Del Myriad, Episode I:The Sith Wars
by Lindiel Eryn
Summary: PG for character death and battle scenes. One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the Galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hot-headed Padawan.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the Galaxy. Rowling owns the world the woman is from.  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hot-headed Padawan.  
  
"There hasn't been outright war in the Galaxy since the foundation of the Republic a thousand years ago" -Governor Sio Bibble, episode II  
  
"The Sith have not been seen in one thousand years" -Mace Windu?, episode I  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith Wars  
  
Prologue  
  
It wasn't safe. The senses of the young mother screamed danger, though she could see none. When she disapparated from the place she had called home for almost all of the 21 years of her life, she had only concentrated on a place, any place where her newborn child would be safe from its father. She had trusted him, believed in him, followed his vision, but he had taken advantage of her youth and innocence while she was blind to his true nature. She now saw him for what he truly was: a snake, a monster, the incarnation of evil.  
  
The woman stood on a platform in a city unlike any she had ever seen. Its massive buildings, stretching as far as the eye could see, had an air of something ancient about them, but they were nothing like the centuries old stone-wrought manors she knew and grew up in. These buildings were sheer monuments of glass and metal, caked with filth. It reminded her a bit of a muggle city she had once glimpsed, she had been told it was 'the bad side of town'. Between the buildings flew vehicles of varying sizes and shapes. There were so may of them that they flew in layers, one layer going one way, the next one up or down going another. Her platform seemed to be on one of the lower layers, because there were countless layers of traffic above her. She wondered why this place that reeked of danger would be the place where her daughter would be safe. Whatever made these vehicles fly, it wasn't magic.  
  
A gust of wind came up, causing her black velvet robes to billow about her, revealing the small bundle she held close to her bosom. A piece of trash was blown over the edge of the platform. She watched it fall. Down... and down... and down, until it was engulfed in the darkness below.  
  
"What is this place?" she wondered aloud, realizing that not only did the city tower thousands of feet above her, it also plunged thousands of feet below her. She had never been this high above the ground before, not even on a broom, and she was always the one that went the highest.  
  
"Coruscant." The answer came from a man in a roughly woven brown hooded cloak. An air of peace seemed to emanate from him, a counter-balance to the danger seeping from the very atmosphere of this strange city.  
  
What looked like a sleek train car pulled up to the platform, and a door on its side opened. Creatures she had never seen before got out of the car while others that had been on the platform with her got on. She realized the strange train car was something like a bus, and her instincts told her she should board it as well. They had failed her before, the result being her standing in a strange city with a two-day-old child in her arms, but she had nothing else to go by. She boarded the bus.  
  
"Half a credit fare!" the driver called out to her. She had simply walked onto the bus and sat down. It had completely slipped her mind that she would have to pay a fare.  
  
"She doesn't have any Republic credits. I'll pay her fare." It was the man in the brown cloak. Normally she would have been offended that a complete stranger had paid her way, but the peacefulness that surrounded him quelled any objections she may have had. She knew then that this man would know how to keep her child safe.  
  
She watched him the entire ride, barely noticing how the cityscape outside went from dark and grimy to bright and glamorous as the bus made its way up the layers of traffic. She did notice that the sense of danger she had when she first got to the city grew less and less the higher the bus climbed, though. How may times it stopped, letting off passengers and taking on new ones, she didn't know, and frankly didn't care, as long as she got off when the man in the brown cloak did.  
  
The bus had stopped near a great square building with spires that pierced the clouds. The man in the brown cloak was the only one to stand up to disembark. She followed him, and took hold of his cloak as he stepped onto the platform.  
  
"How did you know I didn't have any of your kind of money?" She knew she couldn't ask him right away how she could keep her child safe, so she said the first think that came to mind.  
  
"I am a Jedi. My name is Kor-Ben Tai"  
  
A Jedi. She didn't know what that meant, but she knew it was the answer. The Jedi spoke again.  
  
"The Force is very strong in your daughter."  
  
"The Force?"  
  
For some reason, the fact that he knew her child was a girl didn't surprise her in the least.  
  
"The power of the Jedi."  
  
"Does this mean my daughter could become a Jedi?"  
  
If this Force thing was what caused the peace that surrounded the man, she wanted her daughter to have it.  
  
"With training, yes."  
  
It was beginning to sound like the Force was similar to magic. It was something you were born with, but needed training to properly wield.  
  
"How can I get her training?"  
  
"She must be presented at the Jedi temple. With the Force as strong as it is upon her, it should be no problem to get her accepted.  
  
As the man was still speaking, the young mother winced. She thrust her child into the bewildered man's arms, and then gripped her left forearm in pain. "Can you take her there? She is no longer safe with me."  
  
Before the Jedi could say anything, the woman pulled three objects out from under her cloak. She laid the first of the three in Kor-Ben Tai's arms, alongside her child. It was a polished mahogany stick, about 10 inches long.  
  
"This is my wand. Tell her it belonged to her mother."  
  
She then pressed the second object, a wrought iron key, into his hand.  
  
"I have a feeling I apparated us into another world. If she ever finds her way back to the world she was born into, this key will come in handy while she is there.  
  
Lastly, she handed him a small velvet bag.  
  
"In this bag is a pendant that will allow my daughter to identify her father. He must not find her. He must not even know she exists, not until she is able to defend herself against him."  
  
Having given everything she had of importance to the Jedi, she began to walk away, towards the edge of the platform. By then, Kor-Ben had recovered from the shock of the previous minutes. He called out after her.  
  
"Wait! You never told me your name!"  
  
"My name is of no importance. Her name is Amy Riddle"  
  
With these words, she stepped off the edge of the platform, plummeting to the depths of the planet-city like the piece of trash she had watched earlier that day. The knowledge that her daughter was safe made the pain from the mark burning black on her forearm almost bearable.  
  
Kor-Ben Tai watched in horror as the strange woman plummeted to her death before he could stop her, but a voice inside told him that even if he had, it would have been of no use. Pondering her strange words, he opened the velvet bag. Though he didn't know it, the pendant was identical to the mark on the woman's arm: a skull with a snake protruding from the mouth like a tongue.  
  
~*~*~  
  
I'm assuming you all know about the Star Wars universe, this story being posted in the Star Wars section, but for those of you who are clueless as to who Rowling is, here are a few pointers that may help you understand this story better.  
  
-JK Rowing is the author of the Harry Potter books. -The woman is from the Wizarding World. -The major bad guy in that world calls himself Lord Voldemort, but his real name is Tom Marvolo Riddle, kind of like the Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker thing, even though he's probably closer to Palpatine on the evilness scale. He wants to rid the world of all Muggles and Muggle-born witches and wizards, and he can talk to snakes. -A muggle is someone non-magical -Voldemort's followers, called Death Eaters, have his Mark branded on their left forearm. It's usually red, but it burns black rather painfully when ever he summons them. It's called the Dark Mark, and it's in the shape of a skull with a snake protruding from the mouth like a tongue. -Apparition and Disapparition are a wizarding way of travelling. It's kind of like Teleportation, except with magic. How it works is you concentrate on your destination with your wand in hand, then the magic makes you disappear (disapparate) from wherever you were and appear (apparate) wherever you wanted to go.  
  
Just to note, I based the description of Coruscant on the opening scenes of episode 2. I'm working under the assumption that not much would have changed in the thousand years between when my story is set and when the movie is set.  
  
As for the quotes at the beginning, I don't own the movies, so I don't remember the exact words and I'm not absolutely sure they were said by the people I said they were. I think they're pretty close, but if anyone knows for sure the exact quote and who really said it, I'd appreciate it if you could let me know in your review. 


	2. Sith Hunt

Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the universe. Rowling owns the inspiration for the magic.  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hot-headed Padawan.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 1 : Sith Hunt  
  
The sun was setting over the peaceful meadow. Daytime animals were trundling off to their nests and holes and burrows for a good night's sleep. Nocturnal animals were beginning to wake up, getting ready for a night of hunting or foraging, whatever they did. They had no idea their peace was about to be disturbed.  
  
A black tear appeared in midair above the meadow and a creature in a billowing black cloak came hurtling through, landing roughly on the ground that was a good ten feet below him. If it weren't for his head, you might have thought he was human. He had three horns, one above each temple, and one in the back of his head, just above the nape of his neck. The ones on his temples curved back and the one in the back of his head curved upwards so the three horns met above the crown if his head, creating a sort of triangular hat. He had beady yellow red-rimmed eyes and tarnished yellow pointed teeth, and his skin was deep blue. He held a small metal cylinder in his hands.  
  
Not even two seconds later, a 15 year old jumped out of wearing a brown cloak similar to the creature's black cloak. She also had a small metal cylinder in her hands, but hers had a sharp yellow light coming from one end. It was a lightsaber.  
  
The creature activated his lightsaber to meet the girl as she fell, but he was too slow, the girl cut his hands off on her way down to the ground. She landed in a roll, picking up her enemy's lightsaber that she had separated from his body and deactivating her own saber as she stood up.  
  
She stretched a hand out towards him and, summoning the force, held her thumb and forefinger out as if she was holding something between them, then raised her arm. Simultaneously to these movements, the creature was levitated so he no longer touched the ground.  
  
"Mid-air that time. Man, you must be really running scared." The girl was speaking nonchalantly to the creature who had a look on his face that was a cross between fear of what was about to happen and anger at being caught.  
  
"You know, you would think that the Sith would have figured out by now that I'm able to /follow/ you guys through those wormholes you create to get away from me." From her tone of voice, you could tell she held the Sith in the highest contempt.  
  
"So, what's the count, Darth Tricon? Fifteen, or was it sixteen villages utterly destroyed on Endor for absolutely no reason whatsoever. And then there were those transporters that you causes to collide with that cargo ship from the Trade Federation. 500 lives lost and 100 million credits worth of merchandise utterly destroyed. And that was only in the last week."  
  
She noticed a garter snake crawling through the grass nearby and turned to it. "What do you think? Does he deserve to die?"  
  
The snake let out a hiss, as if it was answering the Jedi. She turned back to Darth Tricon. "The snake agrees. You deserve to die. But before I kill you, I want to make sure all your little Sith friends know that Del Myriad was the one that did you in."  
  
Del was wearing a pendant, a two inch diameter iron medallion on a long, finely wrought chain, and now she caused it to be lifted off her neck and the medallion pressed to the Sith's forehead, who she still had suspended about 6 inches off the ground. She then drew a polished mahogany stick from her utility belt.  
  
Any trace of anger left Tricon's face as it was completely filled with fear. He had heard the stories, seen the victims, but never thought it would happen to him, the most cunning Sith in the Galaxy.  
  
"You've heard of this, haven't you. It's my mother's wand. Don't worry, it's not gonna hurt"  
  
Del pointed the wand at the pendant force-pressed against Darth Tricon's forehead and said 'Embrasio'.  
  
The pendant glowed red hot and the pattern on it was seared onto the Sith's forehead. Tricon let out a yelp. He was expecting to feel burning pain, but all he felt was a slight warmth. Confusion filled his face. How was this possible, everyone they had found had ugly, blistering burns. Why didn't he feel it burning?  
  
Del held it there for a few seconds, to make sure it had truly branded the Sith before bringing the pendant back around her neck. Just before it settled, she pointed the wand at it once again and said 'Frigore'. The pendant immediately became cool to the touch, so it wouldn't burn into her like it had the Sith. "Told you it wouldn't hurt. I suppressed the pain receptor in your brain."  
  
The Sith spoke, for the first time the entire chase. "I don't believe you" "Here's what it would have felt like if I hadn't suppressed it." She made a slight eye movement, releasing the pain receptor for suppression.  
  
The Sith let out one short scream of agony, but was almost instantly silenced, as Del made a twisting motion with the thumb and forefinger of her outstretched arm. When she dropped her arm, the Sith crumpled to the ground, dead, his head lolling at an unnatural angle.  
  
Del turned her back on her latest quarry. She was late getting back to the checkpoint and she had to report the success of her mission. She closed her eyes and began to concentrate on opening a wormhole to Coruscant. A black tear appeared in the air in front of her and she stepped in. Just before it closed, a blue-white light shot from it.  
  
The sun had just slipped over the horizon, and twilight was beginning to cover the meadow, peaceful once more. The only sign of a disturbance was the blue three-horned Sith lying dead in the middle of the meadow, branded on his forehead was the design of a skull with a snake protruding from it's mouth like a tongue.  
  
~*~*~  
  
One review! ONE REVIEW!!! Do I suck that much? Or did only one person read this? Anyway, dd9736, this chapter and the next are the most Harry Potter this story gets.  
  
Next chapter: Illusion... 


	3. Illusion

Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Rowling owns the universe. Lucas owns the original idea for the force. Centaurs originated in Greek mythology, therefore they are public domain, but my Centaur's name comes from Tolkein's magnificent mind.  
  
According to the Oxford Dictionary, the mandrake is a poisonous plant with emetic (makes you vomit) and narcotic (makes you drowsy/sleep) properties, with a root thought to resemble human form and to shriek when plucked. Unless JK actually has a mandrake planted in her garden, or potted on her windowsill or something, she does not own the mandrake plant, only the magical properties she gives it in the second Harry Potter book, The Chamber of Secrets.  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hot-headed Padawan.  
  
/bla/=italics  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 2 : Illusion?  
  
The turquoise lagoon was mirror-still as the waves lapped gently on the white sand. The coconut palms were swaying gently in the breeze, multi- colored birds flying in and out from among them. Just above the high tide mark, the air began to shimmer as a blinding blue-white light tore through it, leaving a black scar standing vertically in the air. Out of the depths of the wormhole stepped Del Myriad,15 year old Sith hunter extraordinare, fresh from the kill. From the look on her face, you could tell this was not where she expected to show up. Still, the look of surprise and slight confusion was quickly replaced by understanding.  
  
"Another test, Master Kor-Ben? Very well. I know this is Coruscant, and I know this is another one of your illusions. Did I pass?"  
  
When the tropical scene did not fade to be replaced by the static cityscape of Coruscant, Del realized this wasn't going to be easy. Identifying the illusion wasn't enough to conquer it. She began to walk along the beach. It was easier to think while she was moving.  
  
She went over in her head everything her teacher and mentor, Jedi Master Kor-Ben Tai had taught her about overcoming illusions.  
  
~*~*~  
  
/Remember, Del, an illusion is nothing but an imitation of reality/  
  
/No illusion is perfect, but some approach perfection./  
  
/No matter how real an illusion seems, it is all a figment of your imagination, more often than not put there by someone else/  
  
/Just as a copy of a painting can be distinguished from the original by looking closely at the details, so can you distinguish illusion from reality/  
  
/Every illusion has a flaw, a contradiction of reality. Find it, and you will overcome the illusion./  
  
/Some illusions are quite good, even better than the original, but none are perfect copies of that original./  
  
/The better the illusion, the smaller the flaw/  
  
/Beware of being tricked into believing an illusion is reality, or you will be trapped inside that illusion forever/  
  
~*~*~  
  
"Ok, first things first, set out priorities."  
  
The 15 year old was a practical girl and she found categorizing problems made them easier to solve. Thinking aloud helped.  
  
"Number one: It's all in your head. Number two, find the flaw."  
  
Del had been wandering aimlessly during her musings, and without realizing it had walked right to the water's edge. She was jerked out of her musings by a small wave that came up and soaked her boots. She let out a frustrated yell, then for the first time, really looked at the water.  
  
"There is no way water could be that color for real."  
  
Here hopes went up, thinking she had found the flaw. The water was a shade of turquoise she had never seen before, and it did /not/ look natural. She concentrated on the supposed flaw through which reality would be pulled, releasing her from the illusion.  
  
Del noted every detail that, to her, proved she was in an illusion. Contradiction number one, the water was mirror-still, but waves still lapped the shore, her wet boots being proof. Contradiction number two, the water was clear enough to see the white sandy bottom, but the landscape behind her was still clearly reflected on its surface, from the great cone- shaped mountain in the distance, to the palm trees swaying gently in the breeze mere steps away.  
  
She noticed one of the palm trees was swaying more forcefully than the others. Contradiction number three. Wait, maybe not. An enormous snake was crawling out of it, and Del was sure she heard it saying "Kill! Kill!". She readied herself for battle, watching the serpent's progression intently though the reflection. It may be just an illusion, more specifically part of an illusion, but people have been known to die when struck fatally within an illusion.  
  
The serpent was almost upon her. She was about to whirl around and face it when she saw it's eyes reflected in the water. Two great big yellow eyes. She knew no more.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del woke to the feeling of a cool cloth on her forehead. She sensed someone sitting beside her and struggled to open her eyes.  
  
"Lie still, little one. You have just woken from being petrified and are bound to have an awful headache."  
  
The voice was old and wise, yet still young and deep. She didn't recognize it, but he was right. She did have an awful headache. She groaned and, ignoring the order to lie still, tried to bring her hand to her head to massage her pounding temples, but her arm didn't respond. The effort must have been visible though, because the voice spoke once again. "Don't try to move just yet. The Mandrake juice hasn't yet had enough time to fully unpetrify you. Another minute or so and you should be able to move again."  
  
What was this? Petrified? Mandrake Juice? What in the Force was going on here? Del summoned the Force with all her might and opened her eyes. She was in a cavern of sorts, not a gloomy one, but one with a decent-sized mouth that let the sunlight in. She was lying on a bed of moss and leaves, her cloak spread on top of her. Beside the bed was the source of the voice, a creature she had never before seen. It had the body of a horse, but where the horse's head would have been, there was the naked torso of a silver- haired man.  
  
Being used to seeing strange creatures from her travels, she was not at all surprised at his physiology, but curiosity got the better of her.  
  
"What are you?" she barely managed to croak out, surprised at how dry her throat was.  
  
The creature, for his part, was surprised that she was moving her jaw, much less speaking. "The mandrake juice seems to act more quickly on you than most humans" he mused, before solemnly answering her question.  
  
"I am a Centaur. My name is Mallorn." He drew out a gourd and held it to Del's lips. "Here, drink this."  
  
Sensing no danger, she accepted the drink. Cool crystalline water seeped down her throat, soothing the dryness. There must have been something in the water, because her headache was immediately healed, allowing her to think clearly.  
  
She realized she must still be in the illusion, because she wasn't back on Coruscant. She stood up, planning on trying to overcome the illusion once more, but she was still weak from being unpetrified. The blood rushed from her head and she fainted.  
  
~*~*~  
  
For those of you who are clueless about J.K Rowling's Harry Potter world, the giant snake is a basilisk, a serpent that kills you if you look it in the eye. In the second book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, there's a Basilisk loose at Hogwarts, the wizarding school he goes to, and people are getting petrified all over the place because they see the reflection of it's eyes rather than the eyes themselves. The cure to petrification in the book is Mandrake Juice.  
  
Just to note, starting at the next chapter, things are going to stay in the galaxy. Del won't be coming back to this world until episode II. Hope that answers your question, MBFA.  
  
As for thenewkid, you asked what Tricon is. If you mean what species, I don't know, I made him up, but he's kinda sorta based on Darth Maul, but if that's not what you meant, then he's a Sith. I assumed everyone reading this would know what a Sith is, because this is posted in the Star wars section, but judging by your stories, you're more into HP, so maybe you don't. The Sith are the bad guys, they use the Dark Side of the force. Their closest equivalent in the HP universe would be the Death Eaters.  
  
See y'all next friday!  
  
Next chapter: ...Or Not. 


	4. Or Not

A/N: I forgot to post on Friday!! I'm soo sorry. I got caught up in working on my semester project that's due Monday and it totally slipped my mind. I normally have a 3-hour break Fridays, but I worked right through it, then I was at school Saturday finishing my project, a full advertising campaign where I had to design a poster, pamphlet and pin. Anyway, I only remembered this morning (Sunday morning) then the Internet was blocked so this is the first chance I've gotten today to post. I promise that the next chapter will be up next Friday (Dec. 19)  
  
Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. I own the Reldan star system. I own the Stellar-Rani quadrant. Lucas owns everything else in the Galaxy.  
  
The voice in the void is inspired by episode 114 of Adventures in Odyssey, Someone to Watch Over Me, original air date 2/9/91. The official Adventures in Odyssey web site is whitsend.org.  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hot-headed Padawan.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 3: Or not  
  
She was floating. No, not floating, just being there, surrounded by the nothingness of the Void. Everything was black, darkness was swirling around her. It wasn't entirely black though. The shades varied from dark grey to absolute black, with the occasional streak of yellow or red mixed into the swirling nothingness.  
  
A voice came out of the Void, calling to her.  
  
Del... Del... Come on Del... Come on...  
  
Half of her wanted to follow the voice, but the other half hesitated, not knowing where it wanted her to come on to.  
  
Suddenly, an entirely different voice spoke softly next to her ear.  
  
"Del! Wake up!"  
  
She opened her eyes.  
  
"Master Kor-Ben."  
  
She was lying on her stainless steel grey bunk in the Jedi quarters on Coruscant. Relief flooded through her. "I vanquished it," she whispered to herself.  
  
"Welcome back, Del Myriad. Not too tired I hope?"  
  
Del stifled a yawn. "Nothing I won't get over, Master Kor-Ben Tai. I've had worse days."  
  
"Not too many, my young Padawan learner. Tracking down and slaying one of the most ruthless Sith left in the galaxy is one thing, but surviving your wormhole home getting hit by a supernova blast, well let's just say you're lucky to be alive, and even more lucky we found you.  
  
Del started at this, sitting straight up in her bunk.  
  
"Wait, supernova? What about the illusion you created?"  
  
"What illusion?"  
  
"The one with the palm trees and the white sand and the turquoise water." Del was starting to get confused.  
  
"That wasn't an illusion."  
  
Now she was downright worried. "Master Kor-Ben, I know for a fact that no planet in this galaxy has water that colour."  
  
"The planet we found you on isn't in this galaxy. Apparently they do have water that colour there."  
  
Nothing made sense anymore. "What do you mean, not in this galaxy? My wormholes never go that far off track. And what do supernovas have to do with it? How could I have possibly ended up on a planet I wasn't aiming for?"  
  
Kor-Ben chuckled and raised his hand slightly to stem the stream of questions Del was spouting out.  
  
"You do have a particular talent when it comes to wormholes. But the deviation wasn't your fault."  
  
Del still had questions in her eyes, so Kor-Ben decided to start off at the beginning. "You caught up with Darth Tri-Con on Reldan 57, right?"  
  
"It might have been 57. He had been jumping all over the Reldan star system after Endor."  
  
"Talking about Endor, you were due to check in then, what happened?" It was slightly off subject, but a question he needed answered.  
  
Sensing a lecture coming on, Del tried to explain herself. "I was getting so close to catching him. I wanted to have good news to report."  
  
"Del Myriad, you are still a Padawan. I know you feel you are able to act independently and for the most part, you are, but part of the mandate of this assignment was to check in with your superiors at predetermined intervals to inform them of your progress, should you get separated from your master. Good news or not, you did not follow orders." Kor-Ben spoke sternly, but only to hide the worry he had felt at the week without word from his Padawan.  
  
Del hung her head. "It won't happen again, master."  
  
"It better not."  
  
Kor-Ben still spoke sternly, but he cracked a smile, relieving his Padawan of the weight of his disappointment.  
  
Del sat up a little straighter. "Tell me about the supernovas and me ending up in another galaxy. I find it a little hard to process."  
  
Kor-Ben resumed his story. "Well, since you were late checking in, we sent out word to the Jedi contingents in the vicinity asking if any of them had spotted you, and one of them happened to see you follow Darth Tri-Con though one of his wormholes. Fortunately, she also has a talent for wormholes and was able to trace those created by the Sith to Reldan 57, where she found his body."  
  
He paused, then when onto another side note. "You know, it was strange. We joined the Jedi on Reldan 57 soon after she found the body. I noticed he had the design of a skull with a snake for a tongue branded on his forehead. It looked exactly like that pendant you have."  
  
Del was guiltily silent.  
  
"You used the pendant to brand him, didn't you? I thought we had cleared this up. Even though they are Sith, there is no need to sink to their level and torture them."  
  
Del snapped to her own defence. "I suppressed the pain receptors in his brain. He didn't feel a thing, so he wasn't tortured. Besides, it only takes 5 seconds."  
  
"The Jedi should not feel the need to identify those who die by their hand just so others know they killed them." Kor-Ben spoke in a lecturing tone, as if he had said this several times before. Del rolled her eyes, as if she had heard this several times before and had no intention of listening.  
  
"You haven't said anything about the supernovas yet."  
  
The branding subject was obviously one that had come up before, and it was obviously one that Del wanted to avoid. Kor-Ben gave her a Look, but still picked up his story where he had left off."  
  
"The Jedi that tracked you to Reldan 57 was able to detect the trace of a wormhole opening, and I was able to confirm it had your signature. She did a preliminary trace on it that revealed its destination was Coruscant. We knew you hadn't shown up though, so we had her do a more thorough trace, following the wormhole's trajectory. It happened to go through sector 23 of the Stellar-Rani quadrant, you know, where there are those clusters of white dwarf stars. Anyway, it appears that a cluster of five white dwarfs through which your wormhole went decided to go supernova at the exact moment you reached them, all five of them, almost simultaneously. The blast was powerful enough to send your wormhole off course."  
  
Up until then, Del had been listening and nodding at the appropriate times, but this last statement threw her.  
  
"That's impossible! Wormholes are subspace. Supernovas don't affect subspace."  
  
"Supernovas don't /usually/ affect subspace." The Master corrected the Padawan. "In this case, it appears they did, knocking your wormhole onto a planet in another galaxy. Fortunately, we were able to lock on to your signature and re-open your wormhole so we could get you home."  
  
Kor-Ben had just finished the story, when there was a knock at the door. It opened to reveal a messenger.  
  
"The Jedi council wishes to speak with you and your Padawan, Master Kor-Ben Tai."  
  
~*~*~  
  
The council chambers were in a circular room atop one of the five towers that crowned the Jedi temple. Large windows covered the walls, allowing a sweeping view of the city below. In the terra-cotta coloured floor was set a simple circular mosaic of sand-yellow with brown leaf motifs. The council of twelve was seated around the mosaic, their backs to the windows. The doors into the chambers were set off to one side, in the only flat wall in the room.  
  
The doors opened to reveal the messenger, followed by Jedi Master Kor-Ben Tai and his Padawan, Del Myriad.  
  
"Ah! Master Kor-Ben! How nice of you to join us." A humanoid Jedi seated fourth from the door spoke.  
  
Kor-Ben bowed slightly. "The council sent for us?"  
  
"Indeed we did." The first Jedi to speak then nodded to the council member seated to his right, the third from the door, to indicate he was finished speaking.  
  
The creature was of questionable gender, but the air of authority that emanated from him/her/it gave no doubt this was the head of the council.  
  
"As you may have heard, approximately one third of the Sith confirmed dead over the past few months have had the design of a skull with a snake for a tongue branded on their foreheads. The ones found more than 2 months ago bore expressions of extreme agony, making us believe they died in great pain. Those found more recently bear expressions more closely resembling fear. We have been taking a closer look at these deaths and have found something quite interesting."  
  
The head of the council nodded to the second in command, the Jedi that had spoken first. He turned and looked Kor-Ben directly in the eyes.  
  
"Every place where a branded Sith was found had been recently visited by you or your Padawan."  
  
Kor-Ben gave Del a Look. Del looked partially defiant, partially guilty and partially aloof.  
  
"The last one was found just a few feet away from where Del Myriad's deviated wormhole originated from, on the 57th planet of the Reldan system. The council would like to know if you can tell us anything about this Sith branding."  
  
The entire duration of the speech, Kor-Ben kept glancing at his Padawan with increasingly narrowed eyes. He turned to the council.  
  
"I believe my Padawan had some explaining to do."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Dun Dun Dun.. I know I'm mean. But this chapter is longer than I originally intended. The whole scene in with the Council was supposed to be at the beginning of chapter 4, which was going to include Del's explanation and everything, but I had hit a writer's block when it came to the explanation, so I decided to stick what I had on the end of chapter 3.  
  
Oh, and if you want to get a mental image of the Jedi council chambers, go watch Episode 2. I decided to put the head of the council 3rd from the door and the 2nd in command 4th from the door, because if I remember correctly, Yoda was seated 3rd from the door and Mace Windu was seated 4th from the door in the Council scene in Episode 2.  
  
Thanks to thenewkid for thinking that my last chapter was the best I had put out so far. I hope I managed to top it with this chapter.  
  
Next chapter: Leaving 


	5. Leaving

Disclaimer: I own Del, Kor-Ben and The Man, but not his last name. Lucas owns that, as well as the planets Coruscant and Corellia, the Sith (which he can keep) and the Order of the Jedi. I also own the Centennial Eagle, but owe the inspiration for the name to George Almighty.  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hotheaded Padawan.  
  
/bla/ = italics  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 4 : Leaving  
  
Del Myriad stormed into her quarters. She slammed open her trunk and took out a tan rucksack, tossing her spare cloak, tunic and trousers in the bottom. She tore the blankets off her bunk and stuffed them in after. She threw her spare boots, followed by her spare utility belt on top of the blankets in the rapidly filling rucksack. She was trying to stuff her lightsaber repair kit down the side of the bag when Kor-Ben stepped into the doorway.  
  
"Del! What are you doing?"  
  
"What does it look like?" she replied angrily.  
  
The appearance before the Jedi Council hadn't gone too well and Kor-Ben knew his Padawan had felt slighted and unjustly reprimanded, but he hadn't expected Del's reaction to be this extreme.  
  
"You must learn to control your anger, my young Padawan learner. Anger leads to hate and hate-"  
  
Del interrupted : "-is the way of the dark side I /know/! I'm sick of all these quaint little phrases you spew out at every turn! I'm sick of being told my style of fighting the Sith is unbecoming to a Jedi, even though it's at /least/ ten times more effective than the way they, /you/, tell me to fight. I'm sick of the Sith, I'm sick of what they do, and I'm sick of the Council shackling me when I want to fight back! If they won't let me fight my way, then I'll fight on my own!"  
  
She tried to storm out of the room, but Kor-Ben was blocking the doorway.  
  
"I can't let you."  
  
"And why not!"  
  
"The way you are now, you are open to being seduced by the Dark Side. I can't, /won't/, stand by and see you become an enemy"  
  
"That's not going to happen! The Sith hate me more than anyone else. They'd rather kill me than bring me to the Dark Side."  
  
"If you leave the Order, they /will/ hear about it. No matter where you go in the Galaxy, they will find you and instead of seeing you as an enemy, they will see you as a potential ally and they /will/ seduce you."  
  
"I'd kill them before that happens"  
  
"Don't be so sure. The Sith can be very cunning"  
  
"Then I'll leave the Galaxy." Del muttered. Even though she was mad at the council for their reprimand, she knew deep down inside that she deserved it, but her pride would never allow her to admit it. Besides, Kor-Ben had been like a father to her, and she never really liked arguing with him, even though that's all they seemed to be doing lately. "What was that?" Kor-Ben wasn't sure he had heard properly.  
  
"Look, I've made my decision. I'm leaving the Order. If the only reason you won't let me leave is because you think the Sith'll turn me, then I'll go somewhere they won't find me."  
  
"What about fighting the Sith on your own?" Kor-Ben pointed out. Del was beginning to contradict herself, which meant she was starting to grasp at straws to justify her leaving, and he had no intention of letting that happen.  
  
"The Council seems to think that the rest of the Jedi can handle the Sith on their own. They just as good as said that they don't need the help of a mere Padawan." Del said bitterly, struggling to close her rucksack, which had come open when she had first tried to get past Kor-Ben.  
  
"Is that what this is about? You don't feel needed, so you're leaving? That's preposterous! You're being very selfish. You know as well as I do that the only thing the Council reproaches you of is the branding of the Sith you've killed."  
  
Del 'hmph'ed as she finally got the bag closed. She sighed in frustration when she noticed that a small velvet bag had fallen out of her sack. It had a long drawstring , so she slung it around her neck rather than re-open her sack, and the weight of the key inside it caused it to settle next to her pendant. She hefted the rucksack over her shoulder and tried once more to push past her mentor, who was still blocking the doorway.  
  
"Oh no you don't!"  
  
Kor-Ben tried to grab her to keep her from leaving, but this time Del was ready for him. She force-pushed him through the doorway, slamming him against the opposite wall, then sprinted down the hall. Kor-Ben was a bit dazed, but he still had enough presence of mind to use the force to tear a light fixture from the wall and send it flying after her. It would get to her faster that he would be able to physically, and maybe it would knock some senses into her. Literally. She managed to duck it though, and it went crashing through the window at the end of the hall. Seeing her means of escape, Del dove through the shattered window after it.  
  
Kor-Ben ran to the gaping hole, ready to catch his Padawan with the Force. After all, he didn't want her to die squashed like a fly on a windshield, he only wanted her to admit she was wrong, to show a little humility for once and most importantly of all, remain a part of the Order of the Jedi. Looking out he saw not the brown fluttering robes of his Padawan falling, but a black tear in the air closing about a quarter of a mile down. She had opened a wormhole and fallen through it.  
  
He shook his head in amazement. Opening a wormhole while plummeting through the air is quite a feat. Well, he supposed he'd better go find a wormhole tracker, to see where to she had jumped.  
  
~*~*~  
  
In a spaceport on the other side of the city-planet, a sandy-blonde haired man was on top of his Corellian freighter, and was verbally abusing the space ship's starboard thruster, which had decided to break down at the most inopportune moment. He stopped short when a black tear appeared in the air a few feet above his ship, that by the way looked like it was built out of junkyard scraps. Del fell through the tear, her robes billowing behind her. Picking herself up and dusting herself off, she turned to the man that was staring gape-mouthed at her.  
  
"So, how fast does this piece of junk go?"  
  
The man immediately snapped his mouth shut into a scowl before coming to the defense of his ship.  
  
"Piece of junk! PIECE OF JUNK! For your information, the Centennial Eagle is the fastest ship in the Galaxy. Piece of junk, indeed!"  
  
"In my experience ships that look like they were pieced together from the junkyards of Corellia are the fastest and most efficient ones out there. Their pilots also tend to be the kind that take the money and don't ask questions. Have I been mistaken?"  
  
The man had been muttering something about a piece of junk and I'll show her a piece of junk, but at the mention of money, she had his complete attention.  
  
"What are you looking for?"  
  
"A pilot that's not scared of the Jedi that'll get me off the planet within the hour"  
  
Giving Del a second look, the man decided that there was no way a mere girl would have the kind of money he needed to replace his broken thruster.  
  
"Sorry, kid, can't help you. My thruster's out of whack and I can't fly without it."  
  
Del walked over to the thruster and stretched out her hand towards it, probing it with the force.  
  
"Did you fly through an asteroid belt recently?"  
  
"How did you know?"  
  
A small cloud of asteroid dust and pebbles burst out of the thruster.  
  
"There's why your thruster's out of whack."  
  
She probed it once more before declaring that the thruster was now in whack.  
  
"If you had had that repaired the conventional way, it would have cost you about 10 000 credits. How fast can you get me to the Stellar Rani quadrant?"  
  
"If my thruster was working, 10, maybe 12 standard hours. It's what, 50 parsecs away?"  
  
Del nodded her thanks and, picking up her rucksack, jumped off the top of the ship onto the boarding ramp. She called out over her shoulder "I just fixed it" before entering the ship.  
  
The man took the ladder down and ran after her, demanding that she get off his ship. He tripped over her rucksack that she had dropped in the middle of the corridor, by the doorway into the living quarters. This girl was beyond understanding.  
  
He finally caught up to her in the cockpit, where she was strapped into the co-pilot's seat.  
  
"What do you think you're doing barging onto my ship like you own it!"  
  
Del ignored him and continued flipping the numerous switches on the control panels in front of her. The man's eyes widened as he realized she was programming the navigator and initiating the launch sequence.  
  
"Don't touch! She's a very cantankerous ship!"  
  
He was like a little boy who didn't want to share his toys. Del deadpanned him: "Strap yourself in."  
  
"What! I will not let you hijack my ship!"  
  
"You are carrying a cargo of contraband weapons. The authorities will be here any minute. Strap yourself in." She spoke like a parent ordering a child, even though the man was easily twice her age.  
  
He looked at her, stunned. How could she possibly know that? Anyway, her words were enough to shock him into obeying. The man strapped himself into the pilots seat, momentarily forgetting that his ship couldn't fly.  
  
"They say Corellian pilots are among the best in the galaxy?"  
  
"Among the best? We /are/ the best!"  
  
"Let's see if that's the truth speaking, or if it's just your ego."  
  
Del reached over and flipped the ignition switch.  
  
"Wait! I told you she won't fly because of the thrus-"  
  
The engine revved to life and the Centennial Eagle began to take off  
  
"-ter..."  
  
The man stared a Del in amazement. Who was this girl?  
  
"I told you I fixed it." She said smugly.  
  
Just then a terse voice crackled over the radio.  
  
"Corellian freighter, please land immediately. You have not been authorized for takeoff."  
  
"And there's the authorities."  
  
Del grabbed her piloting yolk and pointed the Eagle to the sky.  
  
"Corellian freighter, land immediately or you will be fired upon."  
  
The man looked slightly alarmed, but you got the sense that he had had run- ins with the authorities before, and had no intention of getting caught.  
  
"You can't let your baby get shot up now, can you?"  
  
He shook his head and took his piloting yolk.  
  
"So show me Corellian pilots live up to their reputation."  
  
She began un-strapping herself.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"The gun turret. Get us out of here, Rambo."  
  
"It's Solo, Nash Solo"  
  
"Del Myriad."  
  
~*~*~  
  
I just LOVE making up people's ancestors! Oh, and all information about the Jedi comes from the starwars.com database. I made up the spaceport, but I imagine there would be several on the city-planet.  
  
By the way, this is going up Saturday, because no one reviewed on the last chapter and I wanted to wait and see if anyone would review, but no one did, so I'm putting this up anyway. If you read, please review. I like to know people are reading my stuff, it's what keeps me going.  
  
On a non- story related note, I SAW THE RETURN OF THE KING LAST WEDNESDAY!!!!!!!!! I went to the local premiere with my sister, and it was AWESOME!!!! I think we annoyed the people sitting next to us, because we were talking a lot throughout the film. We're both HUGE fans of the books, so we were going "Oh, that's that part!" and "That happened so that means this is coming up" and "Oh look, it's that character!" and "Yay it's the sword!" and "They quoted the book!" and at the end, "Is the blond elf behind Elrond Glorfindel it better be Glorfindel because he was supposed to be in the first movie but they replaced him with Arwen and that was so not right" and I think you get the idea. We were in costume, along with a few others, friends of ours, and the theater manager asked to get a picture of all the people that were in costume, which was awesome! I can't wait to get the pictures back. Anyway, all this to say the movie was awesome, so GO SEE IT!!!!!!!!!  
  
Next chapter: Getting Away. 


	6. Getting away

Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the universe.  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hot-headed Padawan.  
  
/bla/= italics  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 5 : Getting away  
  
Nash Solo didn't get the chance to argue. The girl, who couldn't have been more than half his age, was already gone. He was slightly taken aback, but who wouldn't be if someone literally dropped out of thin air in front of you and began ordering you around.  
  
The gun turret sprang to life, turning a Coruscant Planetary Security Cruiser into a spectacular fireball.  
  
"Anyway, she can shoot." Solo grudgingly admitted.  
  
The remaining CPS cruisers opened fire and Solo's survival instincts kicked in. Dodge left, dodge right, weave over and under enemy fire, but always with your nose to the sky, heading for open space. The cruisers were fast, but the Eagle was faster and she soon outdistanced them. As soon as the ship reached open space, Solo engaged the hyperdrive and switched on the autopilot. He met Del coming down from the gun turret.  
  
"So, Myriad, was it? Are you going to tell me what this is about?"  
  
Del ignored him and headed down the corridor, retracing the first steps she had made on the Centennial Eagle.  
  
"Answer me! You've commandeered my ship and would appreciated if you told me why."  
  
Del paused to give him a baleful look, then reached out with the force to summon her rucksack, which had become lodged between two pipes that rose vertically against the corridor wall, probably thrown there by Solo's evasive maneuvers in their flight from Coruscant. Del swung the rucksack over her shoulders and turned into the living quarters. Solo followed her in.  
  
"You're one of those Jedi, aren't you? This has something to do with that Republic thing they're trying to found, right?"  
  
Solo's demeanor had changed somewhat with Del's last action. Though he was still miffed about his ship being commandeered, the was an element of awe added, then suddenly fear and nervousness.  
  
"Listen, umm. Those weapons that I'm smuggling, their for some, ah, bounty hunters, yeah, that's right, bounty hunters. They're not for the Sith-run resistance." Del had reached a counter that was set in the wall opposite the door. She dumped the contents of her rucksack out onto it.  
  
"So you /are/ smuggling contraband weapons."  
  
She began checking over her things, seeing if anything had been damaged in their flight from Coruscant. Solo, on the other hand, was getting confused.  
  
"Wha-?"  
  
"Back there, in the cockpit? Well, that was a wild guess. I had heard that some Corellians were smuggling weapons, so I took the chance that you were one of them."  
  
Satisfied that nothing was broken, she began re-packing, starting with the blankets.  
  
"Can you help me with these?" Del had her arms full with a wad of blankets.  
  
"If you tell me what you've gotten me into."  
  
Del nodded, so he began helping her straighten the blankets out, spreading them on the floor, thickest on the bottom, thinnest on the top.  
  
"I need to go somewhere where neither the Sith nor the Jedi can find me. The only place I can think of is in the Stellar-Rani quadrant."  
  
"But aren't you a Jedi?"  
  
"Padawan, at least until a few minutes ago. I've left the Order."  
  
Edges to middle, edges to middle, roll.  
  
"Well that explains why the Jedi are after you. I thought they never let anyone leave the Order. But what would the Sith want with a Padawan?"  
  
"According to my /former/ master, they would want to recruit me. Personally, I don't buy that. After what I've done, they'd rather kill me."  
  
Solo was about to ask why the Sith would want to kill her, but then he noticed the pendant that had slipped out from under her tunic and was now hanging freely from her neck.  
  
"Oh my word! You're /that/ Del Myriad!"  
  
"So, you've heard of me."  
  
Del was tying the now neatly rolled blankets with the spare utility belt.  
  
"Yeah, well, I overheard two of the Sith talking about how your killing Darth Tricon was a major setback and how they had to find a way to take you out."  
  
Solo abruptly stopped talking, a look of horror coming over his face. He had said too much.  
  
"And how, may I ask, did you come to overhear a conversation between two Sith?" Del asked slyly as she put the blanket roll back in the rucksack.  
  
He hesitated to answer, then let it all out in a rush. "I... was... deliveringacargoofweaponstotheresistance."  
  
"I didn't hear you" she said in a sing song voice while folding her spare tunic, trousers and cloak.  
  
"I was delivering a cargo of weapons to the resistance." He repeated with his head hung like a schoolboy in trouble, which was kind of strange, seeing that he was the adult in the situation.  
  
Solo raised his eyes apprehensively, not sure how Del would react to the news. After all, according to the Sith, she was a bloodthirsty killer, but he had also hears stories about how she had saved entire villages from being destroyed by the Sith. The look on Del's face was unreadable, so he launched into a plea to cover his back.  
  
"Listen, I won't complete the transaction if you don't want me to. I'll even dump the weapons, just don't hurt me!"  
  
Del had been trying very hard to keep a straight face ever since Solo had figured out who she was, but seeing a grown man cowering in fear before her was too much. She burst out laughing, letting the rucksack that she had just finished putting the now folded cloak, tunic and trousers into, along with her spare boots, slip to the floor.  
  
"I'm not going to hurt you. I need you to pilot." Solo looked relieved. "And judging from what you just said, those weapons aren't for bounty hunters. I'd wager they're for really for the Sith-run resistance."  
  
Del had said this in a playful, but neutral tone. Solo, on the other hand, was quickly learning that it was impossible to predict how she would react in a given situation, so he just nodded in reply.  
  
"Were you serious about not completing the transaction? You know this means you'll be on the Sith's hit list."  
  
"It's long enough as it is. What's another name going to change?" He said, feigning indifference.  
  
Del nodded her agreement, then continued: "Listen, don't dump them. Go to Corellia and give the weapons to the Republicans there. The Sith are planning an attack on the planet, and it will be a battle the Republicans must not lose."  
  
"How do you know where the Sith are going to strike?"  
  
"I'm a Sith hunter, or at least I was. It's my business to know what they're up to. Corellia, and the whole Corellian sector will be much better off as a member of the Republic, and that won't happen if the Sith win."  
  
The man and the girl lapsed into silence. Solo leaned back in one of the lounge chairs and nodded off to sleep. Del put the last of her things into her rucksack, then quietly went and sat at the table, where she began to write a note.  
  
~* Meanwhile, back on Coruscant *~  
  
Kor-Ben Tai was in an open topped cruiser a quarter of a mile down from a shattered window in the south-wet face of the Jedi temple. With him was the Jedi that had traced Del to Reldan 57. Kor-Ben was watching anxiously as the female Jedi concentrated on the surrounding air molecules.  
  
Her eyes snapped open. "There!"  
  
She closed them again and then reached out with the force and her hands and began parting the air. A black horizontal tear appeared in the air below them, at exactly the same place Del had opened a wormhole a few hours earlier.  
  
Kor-Ben eased the cruiser down through the wormhole. They came into a space port covered with the wreckage of several CPS cruisers. Medics were bustling to and fro, trying to save as many pilots as they could. They weren't succeeding.  
  
"What happened?" Kor-Ben asked no one in particular. A passing medic answered.  
  
"A Corellian freighter took off without authorization, the when the port authorities told him to land or be fired upon, he opened fire."  
  
"I take it he got away." The female Jedi said. The medic nodded wearily, the turned to get back to work.  
  
"One last thing." Kor-Ben called out after him. "Where was this freighter docked?"  
  
"Right where you are."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Outside the port, Kor-Ben opened his communicator, and a holographic figure of the Jedi Council's second in command appeared. Kor-Ben gave his report.  
  
"My Padawan's wormhole led to a spaceport on the other side of the planet. I believe she is on her way to Corellia."  
  
"You think she plans on continuing her fight against the Sith on her own?  
  
"That is one thing she said in her outburst before she left."  
  
"Very well. I will alert our contingent on Corellia to keep an eye out for her. Do you know what kind of ship she is on?"  
  
"A Corellian freighter called The Centennial Eagle."  
  
~*~*~  
  
And they're off!  
  
No reviews AGAIN!!! Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to abandon my other story and re-post it as a new story. Anyway, I'm now caught up to where I was with Island, so I hope I'll have more people reading next time.  
  
Next chapter: Corellia 


	7. Corellia

***Edited 02/06/2004***  
  
Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the Galaxy  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hotheaded Padawan.  
  
/bla/ = italics  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 6 : Corellia  
  
The Corellian people were known throughout the Galaxy for their skill in building spaceships, from small one-person cruisers to immense battleships capable of carrying thousands of troops. The latter were quickly snatched up by both sides of the conflict raging in the Galaxy, and it was because of this that the Sith wanted to gain control of the Corellian sector. The Republicans knew that if the Sith controlled the star Corel and the five planets in its orbit, they, the Sith, would win the war and the fledgling republic would be destroyed. They were therefore trying their best to convince the Diktat, which held court on the sector's largest planet, Corellia, that the Sith would bring darkness to the entire Galaxy , but the government maintained it could remain neutral and continue to cater to both sides without being drawn into the conflict.  
  
The Jedi contingent on Corellia did their best to help the Republicans, but there was only so much they could do. For every step forward the Republicans took, the Sith seemed to take ten. To the Jedi, it was obvious the Sith were planning an attack on the sector, but with the government turning a blind eye, their hands were tied. They were here as observers, guests of the Diktat. Were the Jedi to take affirmative action, their host had every right to kick them out of the system, so they sat and bided their time, knowing full well that Corellia didn't stand a chance without them should the Sith launch an attack. Not should, /when/ the Sith launched their attack.  
  
~*~*~  
  
The Corellian Security Force, or CorSec, headquarters were in a vast building in the heart of Corellia's capital city, Coronet. Over the past few months, the swirling gray cloak and long strides of Jedi Master Celia Tanbauer had become a familiar sight in its labyrinth-like halls. Her presence, viewed with suspicion at first, was now tolerated there, despite her being a Jedi. After all, Jedi or not, she was still Corellian and besides, CorSec's security chief Han Tanbaurer was her uncle. She was in his office when the call came in.  
  
"But Uncle Han, are you sure you can't do anything?"  
  
"Listen, Celia, you're my favorite niece, but what can I say? My hands are tied just like yours."  
  
"But the Sith-"  
  
"I /know/ the Sith are coming, I know what this means for Corellia, but as long as the Diktat remains deaf and blind, I can't do anything."  
  
"You can still keep an eye out, be prepared for when they come."  
  
"And I'm doing the best I can without raising suspicions."  
  
It was then that Celia's communicator buzzed. She opened it and a holographic miniature of Kor-Ben Tai appeared. It was hard to tell who was more surprised, Celia or Kor-Ben.  
  
"Celia! You're the one in charge of the Corellian Contingent?" Kor-Ben obviously wasn't expecting to see the beautiful Jedi.  
  
"Hello Kor-Ben, it's been a while." Celia said coolly.  
  
"Not since the Yavin incident what, ten years ago?" Kor-Ben acted like he hadn't noticed Celia's decided lack of enthusiasm at seeing him.  
  
"Something like that. So, why are you calling me?"  
  
"Well, as I'm sure you've heard from the Council-"  
  
"The Council? I haven't heard from them in months!"  
  
"You haven't?" Celia shook her head. "You haven't heard anything about Del? They said they'd contact you."  
  
"What's happened with Del? How is she?" Celia remembered the young Padawan fondly, having worked with her here and there over the years in the fight against the Sith. Without Kor-Ben of course.  
  
"I was hoping you could tell me. Del's left the Order."  
  
"What! Why? She was our best Sith fighter! By the Force, we could sure use her here."  
  
"That's what the council told me they'd contact you about. She just might be there. The Council reprimanded her for her methods, you know, branding her kills and all. Anyway, she reacted by storming out of the Temple saying she'd fight the Sith on her own. At last word, she appears to be aboard a Corellian freighter called the Centennial Eagle."  
  
Up until then, Han Tanbaurer had been simply observing the conversation between the two Jedi, but at the mention of the ship, he stiffened.  
  
"Nash Solo."  
  
"Who?" Kor-Ben asked. Celia on the other hand took a sharp intake of breath before catching herself and making sure the men hadn't noticed.  
  
"Nash Solo, owner and pilot of the Centennial Eagle. I've been trying to catch him for years. Everyone knows he smuggles contraband anything, weapons, spice, you name it. The problem is, no one can prove it."  
  
"So you know this ship?" It was Kor-Ben that spoke once again, or rather his holographic projection.  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Well, it seems he's carrying a rogue Jedi. Master Celia here can testify that there is nothing more dangerous than a Jedi outside the Order. Is there any way you can watch for his ship? We think he's going to Corellia with Del Myriad, that's the rogue Jedi, and we'd like to get a hold of her, bring her back into the fold."  
  
"CorSec has the most advanced space traffic identification technology in the Galaxy, of course I'll be able to watch for his ship. Besides, I'm always watching for him, and thanks to you, it looks like I might actually be able to charge him with something."  
  
Celia was worrying about Del though. Even if she didn't get along with the Master, the Padawan was almost like a daughter to her. Anything to take her mind off Nash.  
  
"What about Del? What makes you so sure she'll be with him?"  
  
"The thing she said about fighting the Sith on her own. Before leaving the Order, she had been planning a hunting trip to Corellia. I think her original plan was to contact the contingent there, but if she was serious about leaving the Order, she might not. She may still contact the Republicans though, so you might want to keep in touch with them."  
  
"I know how to run my operation, Kor-Ben Tai." Celia said pointedly, then coming back to the subject at hand: "How long ago did she leave Coruscant?"  
  
"Yesterday afternoon, so about 15 hours."  
  
"So she'd be arriving any time now, if she hasn't already."  
  
She turned to her uncle, who reached for a desktop microphone that was attached to a small speaker.  
  
"I'm on it." He pressed a button in the stand and a crackle of static came from the speaker. "Space Traffic Control? This is the Chief, over."  
  
"This is Space Traffic Control, go ahead, chief."  
  
"I have just received information from a very reliable source that the Centennial Eagle may be entering the system soon, if it hasn't already. Can you verify?"  
  
"Just a sec, let me check... Nope, I don't have it on the scopes. It's on our alert list, so it'd show up if it were in the system."  
  
"Roger. Let me know if it shows up, and track it to it's landing point."  
  
"Will do. Over and out."  
  
Tanbauer replaced the microphone.  
  
"We'll know the minute he enters the system."  
  
"Thanks. Oh, and by the way, Celia, is there room for one more at the Contingent's quarters?"  
  
"One more? You're not coming here are you?"  
  
"Del is my Padawan and therefore my responsibility. I plan on being there when she is brought back into the Order."  
  
He cut the communication from his side and the holographic projection fizzled out. Celia snapped her communicator shut.  
  
"Great. Just great."  
  
~*~*~  
  
The Sellonians were probably the oldest cognitive species native to Corellia. They were a burrowing creature, preferring to live in extensive underground warrens rather than on the surface. As the younger, surface- dwelling species, human and Drall alike, began to grow in numbers, the Sellonians retreated deeper and deeper into their warrens, leaving empty the caves and tunnels that were closer to the surface. Most of these abandoned warrens had entrances that were hidden away in the remote mountain ranges that made up the backbone of the Corellian continents.  
  
Over the past few hundred years, these warrens had been rediscovered by smugglers and various other lowlifes seeking to live outside the law. They provided ideal places to hide contraband, illegal imports and such. More recently though, they had become a hiding place for an unofficial army. They called themselves the Corellian Republican Army.  
  
The CRA attracted members from all walks of life, but they all had one thing in common: they were disgusted by their government's shortsightedness. Unlike the Diktat, they knew Corellia could not remain neutral in the war raging in the Galaxy. They knew their fatherland would be eventually drawn in. They saw that it would be impossible to remain independent, and when given a choice between the Sith and the Republic, they chose the Republic. There was no way they would allow the horror stories they had heard from sectors overrun by the Sith to happen, not on their watch, not on their planet. And so they watched and waited for the inevitable arrival and attack of the Sith, and in the meantime trained hard and long to be ready for that day.  
  
Some CRA members were also CorSec officers by day, having joined because they felt they were unable to fulfill their duty to protect and to serve the Corellian people while remaining within the CorSec mandate set down by the Diktat. With their inside help, the CRA had been able to link into CorSec's security system, which incorporated planetary security, space traffic control, and various communications channels. Thanks to this, they were able to see and hear everything Corsec did. Though technically on the same side, CorSec had other things to worry about than the Sith attacking. Besides, the Mandate forbade it. The CRA's link into CorSec's security system allowed them to use it to their purpose. Somebody had to keep an eye out for the Sith.  
  
~*~*~  
  
The CRA's headquarters were in a large chamber, a cave, really, that was deep in a hidden mountainside. It was filled with various electronic equipment, screens, keypads, speakers and wires all over the place, with people at every station, observing, viewing, listening in, taking notes. This was their eye into CorSec. One of the stations was assigned exclusively to listening in on all communications at space traffic control. Whoever was on duty there was under orders to report anything suspicious they might hear.  
  
"Captain? I think I have something."  
  
"Yes, what is it, private?"  
  
"Chief Tanbauer himself just told STC to watch for a ship called the Centennial Eagle."  
  
"The Centennial Eagle? Are you sure?"  
  
"Absolutely, sir. He said he had it from a very good source that it would be entering the system very soon , and to inform him when it does."  
  
"That is suspicious. I'll take it up with the General. Thank you, Private."  
  
This was suspicious news indeed. Why would the Chief of CorSec himself put out a watch and track alert on a particular ship. And why did the name Centennial Eagle sound so familiar? The Captain informed General Bel Iblis of this development and at the mention of the ship's name, he not only recognized it, but knew where he had heard it from.  
  
"The Centennial Eagle! Piloted and owned by Nash Solo. No wonder the Chief put out the call personally."  
  
"Nash Solo? Isn't he that guy that Chief Tanbauer's been trying to pin a crime on for years? I remember he almost caught him once early in his career, when my brother lost his ship to him playing sabacc."  
  
"Precisely, Calrissian. Solo is an expert at making sure any charges against him don't stick, and Tanbauer has made it his career goal to make at least one charge stick, preferably one that will send him to jail for a long, long time."  
  
"Right, but I've sure I've heard the name of the ship somewhere before, without the pilot's name attached."  
  
"Are you sure it's not your brother's ship?"  
  
"No, his ship was called Betty. It was a YT-100 freighter from the Corellian Engineering Corporation"  
  
"So's the Eagle. Well anyway, let me see..." The Major began looking through the papers spread on his desk. "Ah! Here it is!" He waved a small memo. "Two weeks ago, the Centennial Eagle was spotted going into the place where we suspect the Sith have set up their headquarters, just beyond the Phatari asteroid belt. Solo's a smuggler, isn't he?"  
  
"Contraband dealer, yeah."  
  
"Two days previous to the Centennial Eagle being spotted there, Nash Solo was seen acquiring a load of blaster rifles from the Jawas on Tatooine."  
  
"You're saying he's selling weapons to the Sith?"  
  
"I wouldn't put it past him."  
  
"So what do we do?"  
  
"Just what the Chief said. Watch for it, and track it when it gets into the system. Only we've got to get to it before CorSec does. If Solo's been gun- running, he may still have some on board, and we need the weapons more than CorSec does."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Of course, no one took into consideration how the mind of a Corellian contraband dealer works. It never occurred to anyone that said contraband dealer would have found a way around the Galaxy's most advanced Space traffic ID technology.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Happy New Year All!!! Things are caught up to where they were ion the old Island of lost wizards. I hope I get all the people back that were reading it. Anyway, this is going up Thursday night, because I won't have time tomorrow.  
  
We didn't do the countdown to midnight last night (New Years Eve), because we had to be up early this morning, leaving at 8 to get to Quebec City for the noon showing of The Return of the King IN ENGLISH!!! The noon phone-in show on CBC Radio Tuesday before Christmas was about what we thought the best movie of the year was, and they were going to have a draw at the end of pairs of tickets to various movies, and Return of the King was one of them. I called to nominate The Last Samurai, but I mentioned that I called hoping to get the ROTK tickets because there are no English theaters where I live, and the host said he'd made an executive decision that I was the winner of the ROTK tickets!!!! AWESOME!!!!!!! They came in on the 31st in the afternoon, so we went down to Quebec City on the 1st (today) to see it. (we just got back as I'm writing this) I saw the premiere here, as you would know if you read the note on chapter 4, but it was the French voice- over version. It is WAY better in the original language.  
  
Notes: The Republicans do not refer in any way shape or form to the American political party of the same name. They are somewhat based on the Rebels from Star Wars episodes 4-6, but they aren't really rebels so I couldn't call them that. I called them Republicans because they are supporters of the Republic.  
  
According to the starwars.com databank, the Corellian Sector contains 5 inhabited planets that orbit the star Corel. The main planet is called Corellia, their government is called the Diktat, the capital city, which is on Corellia, is called Coronet and their security force is called CorSec. There are 3 species native to the sector, Humans, Drall and Sellonians, who are a burrowing creature that left empty burrows near the surface. IT would make sense that smugglers would use them.  
  
The name for the CRA is inspired by the IRA, the Irish Republican Army, and their ideals are somewhat similar. They fight for the freedom of their country. The only difference is that Corellia is not yet occupied. Just to note, the Republicans mentioned at the beginning of the chapter are more of a political delegation sent from Coruscant, while the CRA is more of a grassroots movement. I guess they are closer to the military wing of the Rebels in SW ep.4,5,6.  
  
***Added 02/06/2004*** At first all the CRA people were just going to have ranks, but then things got too confusing later to write by the time I got to chapter 9-10, so I went back and gave important CRA members names. Having some of my characters be ancestors to real Star Wars characters was fun with Nash (and 3 others that appear in chapter 8) so I decided to keep in the same vein.  
  
Captain Calrissian: Lando Calrissian's ancestor. Lando is an old friend of Han Solo's, and original owner of the Millennium Falcon. He lost the ship to Han Solo in a heated game of sabacc.  
  
General Bel Iblis: According to the StarWars.com database, one of the original founders of the Rebellion along with Mon Mothma and Bail Organa was a Corellian named Garm Bel Iblis  
  
YT-100 freighter: The Millennium Falcon is a YT-1300 freighter made by the Corellian Engineering Corporation. There is another smuggler ship called the Outrider that is a YT-2400, and since this is in the past, I gave the freighter a smaller series number.  
  
Review responses: I actually got reviewed! Thank you, divad relffehs!!! I know there are certain things that can be done without a wand, but Del needs it, and the key, and the pendant for the sequel.  
  
Next chapter: Homecoming 


	8. Homecoming

***Edited 02/06/2004***  
  
Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the Galaxy  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hotheaded Padawan.  
  
/bla/ = italics  
  
~bla~ = note  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 7 : Homecoming  
  
The Sun was setting over the mountains, tingeing their snowcaps pink and their trees violet when the Centennial Eagle flew out from the clouds above Corellia. To someone who might see this every day, it might not be all that impressive, but to someone like Nash Solo, who hadn't seen his home planet in years, it was breathtaking. At the sight of this sunset, he felt a strange, pricking wetness in his eyes. He blinked to dry them, but if anyone had been there to ask him if he was crying, he would have vehemently denied it. Nash Solo was a stoic, manly man, and stoic manly men did /not/ cry. He would have insisted it was the sun getting into his eyes, or a piece of dust or something.  
  
The last time he had cried, he was five years old. His best friend had been training for the past three years to be a Jedi, and now she was old enough to go to Coruscant and train at the Temple. He understood he couldn't go with her, but what he couldn't understand is why she had to leave him. Couldn't the Jedi Master that had been training her continue on like she had been since his best friend was two? Why couldn't she continue to train on Corellia? Why did she have to go to Coruscant? All questions left unanswered as his five-year-old self watched the starship take his best friend away, tears streaming down his cheeks  
  
"Celia"  
  
His mother had held him, trying to comfort him. She had told him he'd make new friends even better than Celia, but he insisted that he'd never have another friend like her. He had declared he hated the Jedi for taking her away from him. He remembered starting to cry even harder when his father told him that now that he was five, it was time to grow up and be a man. Men don't cry. Ever since that day, he had remained resolutely friendless, never letting any relationship get past either the acquaintance or business partnership stage, and when he learned that the Sith were opposing the Jedi, he had jumped at the chance to help them.  
  
That was ten years ago now, and since then he had slowly but surely come to the realization that the Sith weren't all they were cracked up to be. He had begun to find it increasingly difficult to turn a blind eye on the atrocities he knew they were constantly committing. Funny how a second Jedi falling into his life was the final push it took to finally switch sides.  
  
As he brought the Eagle towards the surface, on the approach to Coronet, his mind wandered back to said Jedi. She was the first person he had met in along time that had unsettled him. Her take-charge, nonchalant, slightly arrogant manner just didn't fit with the slip of a girl she appeared to be, that is until you looked into her eyes. Steel grey, they were as cold and determined as their color's namesake. She had something to do, and the Force help you if you got in the way.  
  
Nash checked the instruments surrounding the pilot's seat. The Eagle was now blow Radar level. He turned the freighter sharply around and, skimming the treetops, headed back towards the mountains. He saw his hands were trembling slightly on the pilot's yolk, and he took a deep breath to calm his nerves. Changing sides in a war like this was risky business, especially when it meant betraying the Sith. Why did the most risky things always happen to him? Then a gain, his Dad used to tell him stories of various predicaments he had gotten himself into before settling down. Maybe it ran in the family. His eyes fell on a folded piece of paper lying on top of the navigational computer, more commonly called a NavComp, and his thoughts turned back eighteen hours  
  
~*~*~  
  
He had awoken with a start in his lounge chair that sat in a corner of the living quarters, sensing the Eagle had come to a stop. Noticing movement over by the table, he glanced over. He thought he saw what looked like a small black tear in the sky, but he blinked and it was gone. He thought nothing of it, having noticed a folded paper lying on the table. The same paper, by the way, that would be lying on top of his NavComp eighteen hours later. His name was written on it, so he picked it up. Unfolding it, he read.  
  
~ Nash Solo, Thanks for the ride. In case you haven't noticed, we've reached the Stellar- Rani quadrant, which is where you said you'd take me. By the time you read this I will have left the ship, so don't bother looking for me. Just a reminder, DON'T DUMP YOUR CARGO! Bring the weapons to the republicans on Corellia. Once you've reached the Corellian System this note will change to instructions on how to find them. May the Force be with you, Del Myriad ~  
  
Reading the last sentence, he wondered aloud how a note could change when written on paper. Sure, if it was a data pad it'd make sense, but writing on paper was permanent, wasn't it? Besides, who even used paper anymore? Imagine his surprise when all of a sudden the words faded and were replaced with another note in the same handwriting.  
  
~ I thought you would wonder that, Nash, I can call you Nash, right? How the messages change? Simple, I spelled the paper. You're probably wondering what that means. Well, you've seen my pendant. It belonged to my father, from my mother I have a wooden stick called a wand. There are some things that are difficult to impossible to accomplish with the force, but when I hold the wand words come into my head and I can accomplish them. ~  
  
The words faded again and were replaced by another note.  
  
~ Follow these instructions. I can't be there myself to carry them out, so I need you to do it for me.  
  
1. Fly to Corellia. When you get there, begin the approach to Coronet. Your next instructions will appear just after you enter Corellia's atmosphere. ~  
  
Of course, he ignored the initial instructions not to look for her. After all, how could she have gotten off the ship? The first thing he had done was check out the window, and he was the ship was hovering at the center point of five recently exploded supernovae. There was nowhere for her to go so she had to be on board. He had searched every nook and cranny of his ship without finding her when he felt the paper tingle in his pocket, where he had put it before the search. He took it out and unfolded it again, only to see the message had changed again.  
  
~ I told you not to look for me. You've wasted an hour and a half! Now get your butt in the pilot's seat and high tail it for Corellia! ~  
  
He almost dropped the paper then. How could a supposedly inanimate object know he had been looking for his "passenger"? Unless it had something to do with that spell thing from the second note. After recovering somewhat, he asked the paper where Del was, ignoring the part of his mind telling him he was losing it, talking to a piece of paper. Still, the message changed  
  
~I can't tell you. Go to Corellia~  
  
"Why can't you tell me? I know you know where she is!"  
  
~Just in case the Jedi catch you so you can't tell them~  
  
"What the heck would the Jedi want with me?"  
  
~ If I know Kor-Ben, he'll have guessed I was on this ship. He will have alerted the Council about you, and they probably will have sent Jedi out after you. When they catch up to you, they will question you, and if you don't know where I am, you won't be able to tell them. Now GO TO CORELLIA! You've wasted another five minutes. ~  
  
It was after the argument with the piece of paper that he finally listened and set a course for Corellia. Fifteen hours later, he was approaching the planet Corellia. There had been a tense moment when he passed the CSTID barriers that covered the entire system. The codes he had stolen were five years old and he wasn't sure if they'd hold up. Fortunately they did, and now to the eyes of the Corel Space Traffic ID, Nash Solo was flying a middle-class pleasure craft from Alderaan.  
  
When he entered Corellia's orbit, the paper, which was wedged in between two dials on the dashboard, glowed slightly. Nash picked it up from where he had put it sixteen hours previous. There was a new message.  
  
~ Good. You went to Corellia. Make your approach to Coronet as inconspicuous as possible, but get below the radar level before you reach the city. Once you're below radar level, turn back inland towards the mountains, flying below the radar. ~  
  
After reading the message, he lay the paper on top of the NavComp and began his descent.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Nash Solo had been flying barely five feet above the treetops while in his reverie, but a mountainside suddenly coming up in front of him brought him abruptly back to the present. He pulled hard on the pilot's yolk to avoid crashing into it. Fortunately the Centennial Eagle could turn on a dime. If it had really been and Aldreraanian pleasure craft, it would now be a great big ball of fire imbedded in the mountain. But it wasn't, so now the Eagle was nosing the sky, skimming the side of the mountain. The piece of paper, lying free as it, fluttered down off the NavComp into Nash's lap, the ship's movement dislodging it. As it came to rest, it glowed once again with a new message. The Eagle crested the mountain and flew down into the valley behind it. Nash checked the paper to see what the next instructions were.  
  
~ Be careful in the mountains. You might pop up on radar. Select preprog. 1 in the NavComp. It leads to the coordinates of a cave large enough for the Eagle to dock in, and follows a course that will keep you below the radar. ~  
  
By now, Nash had accepted the fact that a piece of paper could have such detailed instructions. He did what he was told and let the navigational computer take control of his ship. It dove down to the river that ran in the deepest part of the valley, following it upstream towards its source. It bent around and went into another valley, then another, and another.  
  
Things continued on like this for another hour or so, the Eagle following preprogrammed instructions and Nash watching out the cockpit window. Even though it had been years since he had last been on his home planet, things were starting to look familiar. Suddenly, the Eagle took altitude, leaving its valley-bottom course, and began flying straight towards the mountainside. Nash almost started to panic, but he realized the ship was slowing down. He took a closer look at the mountainside rushing at him and was barely able to make out the mouth of a cave. A very familiar looking cave.  
  
"My old haunt!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
Inside the Corellian Republican Army headquarters, an alarm began to ring.  
  
"Captain! An unidentified ship is coming straight towards us!"  
  
"How far away?"  
  
"Umm... it's entering the outer cave of Entrance 31 right now."  
  
"What! How did it manage to get past our radar?"  
  
"I don't know! It just suddenly popped up on the screen."  
  
"Any idea what class of ship we're dealing with? Is it from CorSec? Why can't they realize we're on the same side!"  
  
"I don't think it's from CorSec. Hmm, that's strange."  
  
"What is?"  
  
"The electronic signature corresponds with an Alderanian pleasure craft that dropped off the radar on the approach to Coronet, but it's much too maneuverable to be one."  
  
"Right." Captain Calrissian picked up the intercom. "Red team to Entrance 31. Red team to entrance 31. We have an intruder, I repeat, we have an intruder."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Two levels up, Red team began suiting up in full combat gear. They divided into two groups upon leaving the armory. One group went topside to seal the mouth of the cave that hid Entrance 31 while the other went to cover the interior exit of Entrance 31. Whoever had just docked their ship in that cave would be sealed inside, with no way out.  
  
~*~*~  
  
There you go, chapter 7! I was all in a shock yesterday when I realized I hadn't typed this up yet, but I've got it for you on time. I'm starting school up again in 10 days (2 Mondays from now), but I get my schedule next week so I'll know if Fridays still work as an update day. The next chapter still will be up next Friday, but the one after that might be on another day, I'll let you all know next week.  
  
Thank you to everyone that reviewed. I emailed everyone that ever reviewed any of my stories after the last chapter, because I had 2 chapters in a row with no reviews, so I'm glad there are people back. Some of them said they had been reading just not reviewing, so at least I now know there were other people reading, it's just that no reviews makes me think no-one is reading.  
  
*CSTID: Corel Space Traffic Identification  
  
Well, thenewkid, grounding can suck sometimes. You reviewed chapter 4, which would have really been chapter 3, so you have 4 new chapters to read.  
  
Yah, muses can be weird, Mockingbird. I'm glad to know you had still been reading, even though you were too lazy to review, and I loved the new chapter of Heir of the Phoenix.  
  
Great minds think alike, The PrejusticeSpaniard! I already had this chapter written when I got your review, and I already had built in a running-in-the-family thing. It's not killing a bounty hunter, I don't think it'll work in this story, but still, hope you like what I did.  
  
Glad you liked it, Ria The Bookworm. Here's the next post.  
  
Hey, Stargurl2! Well, my story happens 1000 years before the starwars movies, so there aren't any of the real characters in it, only a few ancestors.  
  
Next chapter: "My Old Haunt" 


	9. My Old Haunt

Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the Galaxy  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hotheaded Padawan.  
  
/bla/ = italics ~bla~ = note [bla] = thoughts  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 8: "My Old Haunt"  
  
Nash Solo took manual control of the Centennial Eagle as it entered the cave. Initiating the landing sequence, he looked out at the cave's interior. Even after all these years, not much had changed in his old hideout. Except for that crevice in the back. It was wider than he remembered. And there was light coming from it. Someone had wired his cave, and that someone was probably still here.  
  
His senses went on high alert. He completed the landing sequence and locked down the ship before strapping on his blasters and leaving the cockpit. Instead of heading for the boarding ramp though, he turned into the living quarters. Rungs were set in the wall next to the counter, forming a ladder that led to a hatch in the ceiling.  
  
Two minutes after landing the Centennial Eagle, Nash Solo was climbing out of a round hatch-hole on top of his ship.  
  
He carefully lowered the hatch shut before slowly starting to rise to his feet. He had gotten to a crouch when he suddenly reversed his motion and lay flat on his belly. Men and women armed to the teeth were streaming out of the crevice in the back of the cave. He crawled commando-style to the edge of the ship to get a better look. It seemed they were setting up a security perimeter. He glanced over to the mouth of the cave, in hope that he could make it there before the perimeter was set up. What little hope he had was dashed when a second group of soldiers appeared in the sunlight streaming through the cave mouth, effectively cutting off any chance of escaping that way.  
  
[These better be Republicans]  
  
~*~*~  
  
When Red team One had secured the perimeter and Red team two, the cave mouth, a group of 5 soldiers from within their ranks began an approach on the ship. They took up a spearhead formation, the soldiers on each extremity taking up guard posts on either end of the ship, the one in the middle heading for the closed boarding ramp, and the two remaining soldiers covering him when he reached it and lowered his weapon.  
  
The middle soldier began examining the boarding ramp seal and the ship around it, trying to figure out what sort of lock mechanism it might have and if he could break it. The whole ship looked like it had been rebuilt several times, so he wasn't really surprised that it wasn't anything he recognized, though it looked vaguely like a YT-100 freighter. He noticed a rectangular panel with what might be a hand hold off to the right of the ramp seal. It looked kind of like an exterior opening mechanism, so he tried the handle. It turned, and instead of the ramp lowering, the panel itself opened. The soldier's eyes widened at the sight of what was behind it.  
  
"Uh, sir, I think you should see this."  
  
~*~*~  
  
From his vantage point atop the Eagle, Nash was unable to see what was going on by the boarding ramp, but, he knew every beep and whir his ship made. When he heard the click-whoosh of the panel opening, he had tensed, hoping it wasn't what he thought it was, but when the he heard the soldier call his superior over, he closed his eyes in a 'why me?' gesture. It was /exactly/ what he thought it was.  
  
[They found the lock box. Great.]  
  
He could just picture it, the handle turning, the panel lowering to reveal a green-lit screen and a small keypad. The soldier reading the message that caused him to call his superior over.  
  
~ The Centennial Eagle has been locked down. Please enter the lock code to disengage. ~  
  
A second voice wafted up from below, Nash assumed it was the superior.  
  
"Troops, anything that moves that's not us, shoot to kill. This ship is a gun runner for the Sith, and her pilot is most likely still around."  
  
Nash suppressed the urge to groan. Why did the commander have to say shoot to kill? The only way he could take on 40 well-armed soldiers was with the Eagle's gun turrets, but there was no way he could get back into the ship without being noticed. At least the words seemed to point them out as Republicans.  
  
The commander spoke once again. "Get this baby open. She might have a cargo we could use."  
  
Hearing the increased activity below, it was becoming more and more clear that he had to get out of there if he wanted to stay alive. It was only a matter of time before they would discover him should he stay on the roof of the Eagle like that.  
  
[Unless...]  
  
If anyone other than Nash Solo were trapped on top of a ship like that, they undoubtedly would have been caught and probably killed within minutes. But, he was a Solo, and Solos are notorious for not only getting themselves into sticky situations like this one, but getting themselves out of them relatively unscathed. Most of the time. Besides, this was his old hideout, wasn't it? No half decent smuggler has a secret hideout without having an escape route set up.  
  
[I hope I can still get to it]  
  
He began to make his way back to the hatch. Part of the reason he had chosen this particular cave as a hideout was the fact that there was a crack in its roof that the Sellonians had connected to a series of chambers ideal for storing contraband. The roof was high enough to park the Eagle, but low enough that if he parked directly below the crack, he was able to easily climb into it from on top of his ship. In the old days he had gotten into the habit of parking in such a way that the top hatch was directly below the crack.  
  
Upon reaching the hatch, he turned to look at the cave roof.  
  
[Perfect]  
  
It seemed the habit had remained with him. Barely 4 feet above him was the crack. He stood up, keeping a sharp eye on the soldiers blow before grasping the still-familiar handholds he had carved out all those years ago and pulling himself up into the crack.  
  
He thought for a second he heard a shout just as he drew his foot inside the crack, and for a moment he feared he had been seen, but there were no gunshots. It must have been for something else. He relaxed and began to look for his flashlight.  
  
It was pitch black, the light from the cave not reaching very far up the crack, so years earlier, Nash had hidden a flashlight in a depression in the crack wall. He hoped it was still there. Blindly feeling the walls, he searched for the depression. He found one. It was empty.  
  
[Nash, don't panic.]  
  
It /had/ been a while. Maybe someone else had found the crack. But they would have left the light wouldn't they? Maybe some animal got into here and knocked the flashlight out of its holder. He brushed his hands over the walls with growing apprehension, trying to ignore the pessimistic side of his brain. After what seemed to be an eternity, he found another depression, this one a little lower down. It held the flashlight.  
  
[Let's just hope it still works]  
  
The light was powered by a cold fusion battery, so the power source shouldn't be a problem, but electrode contacts can corrode over time. Even if the power source was in full working order, if the contacts were corroded, no power would be able to reach the bulb and the light would not work.  
  
He found the activator button by feel and pressed it. Light suddenly shone directly into his eyes, blinding him momentarily. He had unwittingly turned the flashlight on with it pointed at his face. He turned it around, lighting the way ahead to his secret storage chambers.  
  
~*~*~  
  
The storage chambers were a mess, exactly as he had left them. Various bits and pieces of contraband were shoved in haphazard mounds against the walls, in some places towering to the ceiling. Back when he had first started smuggling, he had taken to skimming off the top of his cargoes, taking a bauble here, a knickknack there, his customers being none the wiser. Piled around him were the fruits of his labors.  
  
He breathed in the musty air.  
  
"Home sweet home!"  
  
If his memory served him right, he had managed to skim quite the arsenal before a bad experience made him swear off skimming. Now he only had to remember where he put it, so he could take his ship back. Republicans or no, NOBODY touched his ship but him.  
  
A little voice in his head reminded him of a certain Padawan that did.  
  
[Yeah, and look what happened!]  
  
Scanning the light over the piles of bounty, he tried to remember what part he had stashed the guns in. Halfway down one pile, the light reflected off a gun barrel.  
  
[There they are!]  
  
He pulled out the gun and lay it on the ground behind him, along with several blasters, laser cannons and various other firearms. The ammunition was in a few boxes buried under a pile of junk, and when he tried to pull them out, it toppled over him.  
  
[Huh. Glitterstim. That's where I put it.]  
  
The sample of the spice native to the planet Kessel had nearly hit him on the head. It was the very last thing he had ever skimmed. He had learned the hard way never to cheat a Hutt. They may look like overgrown slugs, but their minds are exceedingly sharp. Bubba had picked up right away that Nash's delivery was slightly smaller than what he had been paid for, and Nash barely made it off Tatooine alive, even though he had promised him he'd pay him back. Bubba the Hutt sending bounty hunters after him hadn't helped any either.  
  
He put the spice back in the pile and began going through his arsenal.  
  
It was shortly after getting caught by the Hutts that he began working for the Sith. It got the Bounty hunters off his tail, especially after the Sith took Tatooine and the Hutts essentially lost their power. Except for that one guy though, he just wouldn't give up. What was his name? Rhonda Fett?  
  
[Gahd! Who would name their /son/ Rhonda!]  
  
Anyway, he had dealt with him the only way you /can/ deal with a tenacious bounty hunter. Fett's ship had made quite the spectacular fireball. Though a couple of years back, he had heard of another Fett running around the galaxy. Maybe he had a kid or something. Following in Daddy's footsteps I suppose.  
  
Nash was sorting out the guns by type when he noticed something reflecting off the metallic barrel of a laser cannon. He looked up.  
  
"What the..."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Woot! More ancestors!! You have theprejusticespaniard to blame for it. He wanted to have Nash kill a bounty hunter so it can run in the family, and so you got that little reminiscence scene at the end.  
  
As always, info on the Star Wars universe comes from starwars.com databank. I try to keep as accurate as possible. This means that there really is a planet Kessel where a spice called glitterstim is mined. It looks like smuggling it does run in the family, because the reason Jabba the Hutt was after Han Solo in episodes 4-5-6 was because he was forced to dump a delivery of spice from Kessel that he was supposed to bring to Jabba.  
  
Thank you to those who reviewed.  
  
Eothen: I have read your story. Can't wait for chapter 2 and the return of the Keyboard Files  
  
Spaniard: Well, you got your Bubba the Hutt/ bounty hunter thing. Hope you enjoyed it.  
  
Next chapter: I can't decide whether to call it Centennial Eagle or Corellian Republican Army, but one thing's for sure, another ancestor is introduced. 


	10. Entrance 31

***If you read chapters 6 through 8 before February 6 2004, go back and read the parts about the CRA in them. Things were getting too confusing with only calling them by their rank, so I gave them names and in the process invented more ancestors***  
  
Disclaimer: I own the characters. I own the plot. Lucas owns the Galaxy  
  
Summary: One thousand years before the Empire was even imagined, the Sith were running rampant, trying to take over the entire galaxy. They might have succeeded, if it weren't for one hotheaded Padawan.  
  
/bla/ = italics ~bla~ = note [bla] = thoughts  
  
~*~*~  
  
Del Myriad, episode I: The Sith wars.  
  
Chapter 9: Entrance 31  
  
In the outer cave of Entrance 31, a team of about 40 CRA soldiers were waiting impatiently for their B&E expert to crack the Centennial Eagle's access code, well, as impatiently as their duty would allow. Nerves were wound tight, eyes peeled for the slightest non-CRA movement.  
  
There was a shout from an inner perimeter soldier, a young man with wavy brown hair in his early twenties. He had his rifle pointed towards the roof of the cave above the Eagle.  
  
"What is it, Antilles?" Red Team's leader, Commander Horn asked him.  
  
"I thought I saw a foot coming down from the roof of the cave, sir, right above the ship"  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"It was so fast, I don't know, sir" Antilles looked slightly uncomfortable at the scrutiny his superior was giving him.  
  
"Go check it out. You and you, cover him." The superior designated two other soldiers.  
  
[Ok, I need to get on top of the ship]  
  
Antilles circled the Eagle, looking for a way up. Half way around, he found a sort of ladder built into the side and climbed up. Once on top of the ship, he did a visual scan of the cave roof and spotted an irregularity. He approached it to check it out.  
  
"Sir, there's a crack large enough for a man to climb into here." He looked down towards the commander and in the process noticed what was at his feet. "Right above a top hatch."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Meanwhile, the soldier at the lock box was having little success.  
  
~ Code invalid. The Centennial Eagle has been locked down. Please enter the lock code to disengage. ~  
  
He was starting to severely despise that little green screen. He tried another combination.  
  
~ Code invalid. This is your last chance. Please enter the lock code to disengage. ~  
  
He growled in frustration, the burn scar that covered half his face contorting grotesquely. If his next try was wrong, the whole thing could permanently lock down. He began to look for a way to hotwire the box and bypass the code. He was so absorbed in his work, he didn't notice the commander until he spoke.  
  
"Antilles has found a hatch on top of the ship. Go check it out, you might not have to hotwire this."  
  
~*~*~  
  
"Sir? Do you want me to investigate the crack? I think the pilot may have escaped by there." Antilles called out from the top of the Eagle when he didn't receive a response to his discovery.  
  
"No, not yet, Antilles. We don't know what else is up there, and our priority is getting this ship open." The commander called up from below. "I'm sending Fett up. Check out that hatch."  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
He was a little wary of having a crack above his head and not knowing what it held, but he reassured himself that the two soldiers covering him would shoot anything coming out of it before it got to him. He bent down to inspect the hatch,  
  
And realised the last person to use it hadn't properly sealed it.  
  
He was cautiously lifting it open when the soldier who had been trying to crack the lock code, Fett, climbed up on top of the Eagle.  
  
"Is that it?"  
  
"Yeah. Though I can't help but feel it's a trap. Why leave a way into your ship after going through the trouble of locking it down?"  
  
Fett came over to the hatch.  
  
"Unless he was too preoccupied with saving his skin and forgot."  
  
"Maybe."  
  
Antilles shone a light down the hatch-hole and the two men peered down into it.  
  
"Looks like a standard double-hull pressurization system. The model looks like what the CEC used in it's YT-100 class freighters. It seems this ship is Corellian made.  
  
Fett, having apparently travelled the galaxy extensively before settling on Corellia, was able to recognize just about any make of ship in the Galaxy.  
  
"The outside hatch may have been left open, Antilles, but the inside hatch might still be on the lockdown circuit."  
  
"You're the expert, Fett. Do you go down first or do I?"  
  
~*~*~  
  
Antilles carefully followed Fett down the hatch-hole. The inner hatch had a manual locking mechanism on it, so all he had to do was turn the wheel in the middle of it to open it.  
  
"Looks like the living quarters." Fett called to Antilles as he was coming down the last bit of ladder.  
  
"Yeah. Where to first? The boarding ramp?"  
  
"Sounds like a plan. It seems the lockdown can be overridden by manual unlocking. There should be a way to open it from the inside."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Twenty minutes later, a select group of soldiers from both red teams were combing the Centennial Eagle for anything the CRA might be able to use.  
  
"Found anything?" Red Team's Commander, Garret Horn, was making the rounds, directing the inspection.  
  
"No, just provisions."  
  
"You?"  
  
"Ammunition for the gun turrets. The owner's put military-class weapons in this ship. If anything, we can use her for space combat."  
  
"And on the scanners?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
~*~*~  
  
"How's it coming?" Commander Horn looked in on Fett, who was in the cockpit.  
  
"It's not. Each individual system works fine, but the lockdown prevents them from working together, which they need to do in order to fly the ship. Have the others found anything?"  
  
"No weapons on board, except for the gun turrets. And the scanners haven't turned anything up."  
  
"Are you sure? Solo's a smuggler, I highly doubt he'd store his cargo in the cargo bay out in the open."  
  
Horn was CorSec trained, so he didn't think like a smuggler. Fett, on the other hand was not. No one really knew where he came from, but he was one of their best when it came to dealing with smugglers and contraband dealers.  
  
"But the scanners didn't turn up any hidden compartments."  
  
"I wouldn't put it past him to have scanner-proof compartments."  
  
"Could you take a look then? You seem to have an eye for these kinds of things."  
  
"What about the lockdown?"  
  
"Later. Finding the weapons he was smuggling takes priority."  
  
Fett seemed reluctant to leave the cockpit, as if he felt he might never get to be in another one for a long time. Still, he obeyed the order to leave. The commander didn't notice Fett pocket a piece of paper that had been lying on the instruments.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Nash was sorting the guns by type when he noticed something reflecting off the metallic barrel of a blaster rifle. He looked up.  
  
"What the."  
  
"Hello Nash. Glad to see you made it."  
  
Nash almost tumbled backwards in surprise. Del Myriad was standing in front of him, and she was /glowing/!  
  
"How the hell did you get in here! And /why/ are you glowing?"  
  
"I'm not really here. Theo calls it astral projection. It could explain the glowing, that and the temporal displacement."  
  
"Theo?"  
  
"Theodore Weasley. You don't know him. I met him where I wormholed to."  
  
"Wha-?"  
  
"Listen, I don't have much time. It's kinda hard maintaining this plus my roomies will think I've died again. Anyway, there's a way in the back here that leads into the CRA headquarters. You need to go there."  
  
"Why couldn't you tell me by that paper thing?"  
  
"Because you left it on the Eagle. Good thing, because I'll be able to explain to them you no longer work for the Sith."  
  
"I really don't like the idea of them crawling all over my ship!"  
  
"They won't be for long. You'll get her back if you avoid getting yourself killed, which is exactly what will happen if you try take back your ship by force. Work with them, it'll make things a heck of a lot easier."  
  
"How do you know!"  
  
"Temporal displacement. I'm in the future." Nash growled in frustration, but his demeanour showed he would listen to her. "Talking about the future, tell Celia I say hi when you see her."  
  
Nash wanted to grab her, demand she tell him who she meant by Celia, but the form of Del Myriad suddenly faded away.  
  
It couldn't be his old childhood friend, could it?"  
  
~*~*~  
  
I know, I know, it's a little short, and two weeks late, but what can I say? I had 14 hours of classes last semester, and I have 35 hours of classes this semester. This equals less time to write, and even less time to type. Anyway, I'm trying to get one of my classes credited, a total of 7 hours throughout the week, it'll bring my course load down to a (slightly) more reasonable 28 hours a week. If I can get it waived, then I won't have a night class anymore and I'll get off at 11 on Fridays, instead of 4.  
  
Antilles is Wedge Antilles' ancestor, Fett is Boba Fett's ancestor, Commander Garret Horn is Rostek Horn's ancestor. Rostek is Corran Horn from Rogue Squadron's stepdad and was a CorSec officer.  
  
CEC=Corellian Engineering Corperation  
  
***Parts changed in previous chapters as of Feb. 6 2004*** (If you're too lazy to go back and read them)  
  
Chapter 6: The Major is now General Bel Iblis, the Captain is now Captain Calrissian and his brother lost his ship, Betty, a YT-100 class freighter made by the Corellian Engineering Corporation, to Nash Solo in a game of Sabacc.  
  
Chapter 7: Just changing 'The Captain' to 'Captain Calrissian'  
  
Chapter 8: The wording of the warning on the lock box changed to "The Centennial Eagle has been locked down. Please enter the lock code to disengage." ****  
  
Spaniard: Glad you liked it, though my muses have totally gone haywire with it. Fett's almost turning into a major character because of you. If it weren't for your suggestion, I would not have pushed the ancestor thing so far, and I think my story will be better because of it.  
  
MBFA: Thanx for telling me about the typos. I didn't proof read chapter 8, unlike previous chapters. Anyway, I went back and corrected them. I hope I got them all. About the ancestors, nope, it's not a Skywalker. I highly doubt I'll have one either, the Skywalkers aren't from Corellia. All my names (except for the Tanbauers) come from the Starwars Databank on the page about Corellia. They have a list of people and stuff associated to the planet, and I picked ones that fit my characters. The only non-Corellian character in the CRA is Fett, and I have specified that he's not from Corellia.  
  
Note 07/02/04: Arg!!!! I finished typing this on Friday at school but I didn't have time to upload it and the chapters I've edited  
  
Next chapter: Corellian Republican Army 


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